The Teacher's Pet Ch. 04

Author's Note: This builds upon the events of the previous chapters. I would recommend reading them first, before diving into this chapter.

*****

Thursday, January 22

I slammed my hand onto the alarm clock this morning to silence it and pulled the covers over my head. It wasn't simply the fact I needed more sleep, although God knows I could have used it. The last time I looked at the clock before dozing off, I saw 3:22 AM. Functioning on two hours of sleep would be difficult, at best.

There was also something scary I was trying to hide from. I hoped if I could lay huddled under my blanket long enough, it would vanish into thin air. The problem would go away. However, I was no longer a child, and such things only happened in fairy tales. Besides, the monster I was attempting to avoid was one from whom there was no escape. It was myself.

After stalling for a while, I sighed when I realized I couldn't remain in bed all day. Showing up late for work would make me look bad, especially so soon into my full-time employment. Also, calling in sick wasn't an option. Polly had agreed to meet me after school, and nothing short of the bubonic plague was going to keep me from having our important conversation.

While sitting in the faculty break room sipping my third cup of coffee, I continued to be tormented by what I had done the prior evening. It was one thing to have deviant thoughts involving foot domination, but quite another to have my own student as the submissive. This wasn't just shameful, it was immoral - maybe even illegal. There was no doubt I would be fired and blacklisted from teaching if I ever acted on these wicked desires.

That's when it struck me. I was being so hard on myself, when I wasn't even the one who started the whole thing! I hadn't engaged in this activity with Polly of my own initiative. She was the one who had orchestrated the massage and subsequent smelling of my feet. Her actions caused me to waste so many hours engrossing myself in foot porn. It was all her fault I was torturing myself for being sick and twisted.

My thoughts shifted from self-loathing to resentment of this "innocent" girl. The more I considered it, the more I grew outraged at what she had done to me. How dare she subject me to her disturbing kink! Did she realize what effect it had? My whole world was turned upside-down. Because of her, I had become a basket case!

For the next hour, I remained at the table and stewed over the fact Polly had ruined my life. While no doubt an overstatement, it was certainly how I felt. I imagined all the things I could have accomplished over the past few days and nights, if only she had shown a little self-restraint on Saturday evening. For instance, I would have started creating the upcoming test for each of my classes instead of staring at illicit images.

The bell to signal the end of first period finally snapped me from my haze of anger, and I trudged to my office before heading toward the classroom. I was in rare form during my morning lectures. Any little disturbance was setting me off. I told one girl to write a long essay on why silence is golden, simply because she chuckled at something I said. And there was a boy who coughed too loudly for my liking, so I gave him three days of detention.

When lunch time arrived, I grabbed mine from the refrigerator in the break room and darted back to my office. With the mood I was in, I didn't trust myself to be around any of my colleagues. I had no idea what unintended words might come out when I opened my mouth. Instead, I decided to stuff it with food - and perhaps even try to accomplish some of the schoolwork I had been putting off.

Once I finished eating, I did manage to make a bit of headway on these tasks. However, my focus kept meandering toward the little bitch who was responsible for my foul disposition. Eventually, I had to stop what I was doing when I came across a particular paper and nearly ripped it to shreds at the sight of her name. I took a deep breath as I set it down, thankful for preventing my emotions from getting the best of me this time.

It wasn't long before I had to get up and make my way toward a room full of students, one of whom was the object of my ire. As I walked, I told myself to remain calm and not let my inner rage boil over. It would not be professional, and it would be quite unfair to the other boys and girls. However, I still felt like a ticking time bomb.

There was a scowl on my face as I marched into class, and I dropped my items on the desk with a loud thud. The chatter went silent as everyone in the room looked at me. I could tell by their fearful expressions they knew I was displeased. In fact, a few of them were trembling - as if they had done something wrong and were awaiting a punishment from me.

I folded my arms and gave a cold stare in the direction of my students. Those who were standing scrambled into their seats, and those already sitting slunk down in their desks. I smirked at this reaction and let out an evil chuckle. My wicked side was clearly a force to be reckoned with.

As my gaze shifted to Polly's desk, I rolled my eyes when I saw it was empty. Of course she was avoiding me! She probably heard I wreaked havoc in my morning classes and was scared to show up before the bell rang. Well, if she thought this would save her, she was in for one hell of a surprise. I was going to teach her a lesson that had nothing to do with twelfth grade English!

Moments later, she burst into the room, accompanied by the irritating ring which signaled the start of the period. She scurried to her seat, pulled a notepad and pen from her bag, and looked up at me. In an instant, she cringed and lowered her head. She had no doubt seen the fire shooting from my eyes and the smoke pouring out of my ears.

"Young lady," I said as I stepped towards her, "I have had enough of you showing up late for my class!"

She squirmed and peered up at me. "B-but, I, I wasn't late."

"Yes, you were!" I placed my hands on her desk and bent down so my face was close to hers. "If you aren't in the room before that bell starts going off, you're late."

"But, but—"

I slammed my hands onto her desk. "NO BUTS! I don't want to hear your excuses!"

She was now shaking in fear, and her breathing was ragged. She turned her head in an attempt to escape my stare.

"Don't you look away from me!" I watched as she nervously faced me again. "Now your assignment for tonight, on top of your normal homework, is to write a five-thousand-word paper on why punctuality is a serious matter. And you will read it in front of the entire class... tomorrow!"

Her expression was one of pure terror, and she gasped.

With brows furrowed, I moved closer to her. "Am I being perfectly clear, Miss Wilkerson?"

She spoke in a soft, broken voice. "Y-yes... Miss Nolan."

"And you'll be on time to my class in the future?"

"Yes, Miss Nolan."

"Good! Now I can move on to today's lesson."

I walked to the front of my desk and assumed my normal teaching position. As I scanned the room, it seemed like I had put the fear of God in everyone - especially Polly. She was shivering, and I could detect subtle whimpers escaping her lips.

For a moment, I felt a sense of smug satisfaction. I had given the sniveling little manipulator exactly what she deserved. She would think twice about pulling this type of stunt with some other innocent woman anytime soon.

When I cleared my throat to begin my lecture, I took another glance at Polly and saw tears streaming down her cheeks. At that moment, I realized what I'd done. I had vented all of my pent-up anxiety, confusion, and anger at her - and at several others in my previous classes. Holy crap, I truly had become a monster!

Her sobs attracted the attention of the entire class, and even those who had bullied her now appeared sympathetic toward her. I shook my head, thinking if her worst tormentors felt sorry for her, I had definitely gone too far. As I watched the poor girl continue to cry, my heart shattered into pieces.

A tear fell from my own eye as I stood in silence, contemplating my horrible deeds. I had no idea I was capable of such cruelty. This wasn't the person I wanted to be, especially with these kids. Heck, I had just lambasted one of them for arriving in my class a fraction of a second late, and given her an absurd essay to complete in a single night. Wow, what kind of bitch would do that? The answer, of course, was the bitch standing in front of the teacher's desk.

I sighed and wiped my cheeks, before noticing the puzzled expressions of my students as they directed their focus upon me. Perhaps they thought I was suffering from PMS. My demeanor had morphed from rage to sadness in the span of seconds. While "that time of the month" was a plausible excuse for my behavior, it wasn't the truth. After what I had done, I owed them a real explanation.

Of course, I couldn't go into all the gory details related to foot fetishism. I needed to be vague, so I took a few moments to consider my words.

"I'm sure all of you are wondering what's gotten into me. There's, um, something I need to confess."

This elicited a number of gasps and many looks of anticipation.

"Recently, I've experienced some personal issues that have been difficult for me. Unfortunately, I've let them affect my behavior here at school. And that's not fair to any of you."

I took a deep breath and continued. "So, I want to apologize to everyone for acting like such a lunatic." My gaze fell on the poor girl I had scolded. "Polly, I especially want to say I'm sorry to you. You weren't actually late today, or any day this week. I was just looking for someone to yell at, and you happened to be the unfortunate victim. You didn't deserve to be punished and you don't have to do that awful assignment I gave you. I, I hope you can forgive me."

She sniffled as she dried her tears, and a hint of a smile appeared on her face. This gave me optimism. Perhaps my earlier tirade hadn't destroyed my chance to speak with her later in the afternoon.

With a semblance of order restored and my tension partially relieved, I was able to proceed with the lesson plan. There were several instances when I peered in Polly's direction and stammered a bit, but for the most part I made it to the end of the period unscathed.

As the students began filing out of the room, I approached the timid girl who was packing up her books. Alongside her stood Tanya, who tilted her head when she saw me.

"Are you okay, Miss Nolan? That was, like, really intense!"

"I'll be all right, Tanya. I'm just having a hard time dealing with... something. But I promise not to let it turn me into the teacher from hell again."

She laughed. "Yeah, you were pretty scary. I was waiting for you to grow horns and show us your pitchfork."

I chuckled at that comment. "I'll save that for the next time I see those bullies go after Polly."

"Ha! I can see it now." She spun around to face the back of the room. "You better leave her alone!" She pretended to wield a pitchfork. "Or I'll stab you with this..." She thrust the imaginary implement. "...and throw you into the fiery pit!"

We both laughed, and even Polly managed a giggle at her friend's silliness. When our mirth subsided, I remembered I wanted to follow up on my earlier apology, and also confirm the after-school meeting. I let out a sigh as I placed a hand on Polly's arm.

"In all seriousness, I really am sorry for being so horrible to you. Can you forgive me?"

She looked at me intently and nodded.

"Thanks," I said with a slight grin. "And, um, will you still meet me here after seventh period today?"

Polly stood still for a moment and appeared to be considering my question. Before either of us could say anything, Tanya nudged her.

"Come on, Pol. Just say yes." She seemed indignant when Polly scowled at her. "You know Miss Nolan only wants to help you. I mean, it's because of her that you have this great new haircut and manicure. Maybe she can convince you to wear those new outfits you bought, too."

If looks could kill, the death-glare Polly shot toward her friend would have vaporized her.

Tanya rolled her eyes. "Geez, what's wrong with you lately? I can't even mention anything about your shopping trip without you getting all defensive." She noticed Polly look away and lower her head, so she put an arm around her. "Look, just meet with Miss Nolan and hear her out. Okay?"

She took a deep breath and met Tanya's gaze. "O-okay, I, I will."

"Great!" She gave her friend a squeeze and looked at me. "She'll meet you at two-thirty. I'll make sure of it."

I smiled at Tanya and tapped Polly's shoulder. "You know I won't force you to show up if you don't want to."

There was a look of resignation on her face as she spoke. "No, I'll, I'll be here."

"Awesome!" Tanya grabbed her friend's hand and started toward the door. "Let's go, Pol!"

As they both jogged away, I called after them. "Bye girls!"

They shouted back at me from the hallway in unison. "Bye!"

I closed the door and slumped into my desk chair. Since the classroom was always empty during seventh period, I stayed in that seat for the rest of the time leading up to my conversation with Polly. I kept replaying the day's events in my mind, especially the most recent ones. I felt awful for what I had done to her, but at least I had asked for her forgiveness. I had also apologized to the entire class. Tomorrow I would need to humble myself in the same way in front of my second and third period English classes.

After putting these thoughts aside, I retrieved a pen and a notepad from my purse. I began jotting down ideas for what to say to the girl who would be coming back to speak with me soon. I would tell her how I couldn't stop thinking about what she did to me. And of the hours I spent on the internet. And of the realization that I enjoyed having her at my feet. And that I actually wanted her at my feet. I would even tell her about my lurid desire to pleasure myself while she worshipped me.

Shit, I couldn't tell her all of that! In an instant, I ripped the page out of my notepad, crumpled it up, and threw it in my bag. I then placed my head in my hands. This was going to be harder than I imagined. My discussion with her needed to happen, but I was struggling to find a way to broach the topic of foot fetishism without sounding like a creep.

Before I was able to formulate anything, the bell rang. This meant Polly would be arriving within moments.

I shoved the pad and pen back into my purse, stood up, and went to open the door. The next few minutes dragged on as I stood by the door and waited for her. My heart was pounding in nervous anticipation and seeing her walk towards me did little to alleviate my apprehension. At least there was nobody else in the hallway. By this time, most of the students and faculty were on their way home.

She gave me a brief glance but said nothing as she shuffled past me and into the room. I closed and locked the door to ensure our privacy. I spun around and noticed she was already sitting in her desk. As I approached her, I could see her staring at the floor with her hands folded. She appeared to be at least as anxious as I was. While taking the seat next to her, I summoned the courage to break the ice, even though I had almost no plan for how to proceed.

"Polly, I just... I just want you to listen to me."

Without looking in my direction, she nodded.

I sighed heavily and continued. "What happened at your house on Saturday night really freaked me out. Nobody had ever done anything like that to me before, and I'd never seen or heard of anyone who wanted to smell someone's feet. So you can understand that it was a complete shock to me, right?"

She peered at me for a second and nodded again.

"Okay, well, the next day I started to do some research on the subject. And I found out that having a foot fetish is not too uncommon. In fact, from what I read, the odds showed that at least one student in my class would have this fetish... maybe more."

It seemed this statement piqued her curiosity and she turned her head toward me. "Really?"

"Yes," I said as I placed a hand on her arm. "Something like five percent of all people have a sexual attraction to feet. So, while no one I've known ever mentioned it to me, I'm sure quite a few people that have been in my life have a foot fetish." I gently rubbed her arm. "You're just the first person to bring it to my attention."

There was almost a hopeful look in her eyes. "You mean, you don't think I'm... weird?"

I let out a chuckle. "Well, not anymore." I saw her confused expression. "I mean, at first I thought you were a total perv. But then I went on the internet to try and understand it all. And I have to say, there are a lot of folks out there who are into smelling feet. And not just smelling them, but kissing them, and licking them... and even sucking toes."

She appeared to be struggling with how to respond and she shrugged. "Oh, um, okay."

"Look, it's taking me time to digest it all, since other people's feet don't really do anything for me. But I'm not going to condemn you or make you feel foolish because feet do something for you. Everyone's different."

A slight smile appeared on her lips. "Thank you, Miss Nolan. I, I know what I did was stupid. I should have told you about my fetish instead of, um, trying to sniff your foot without you knowing."

I raised an eyebrow. "Yes, you should have. I felt like you took advantage of me."

"I'm sorry," she said as she squirmed in her seat. "I didn't mean to."

"It's okay, Polly. Just make sure you talk to the next woman whose feet you want to smell... BEFORE you stick your nose under her toes." I couldn't help but giggle, and she did also.

She gave me a sheepish smile. "I will. I promise!"

"Good," I said as I rubbed her arm again. "Now, I have some questions about your particular fetish... I mean, if that's all right with you."

"Um, y-yeah, I, I guess." She became fidgety as her gaze returned to the floor.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to judge you. I just want to get to know you better." I put a finger under her chin and turned her face toward mine. "Isn't this what friends do?"

"You still want to be friends with me?"

"Of course, Polly." We exchanged smiles and I patted her cheek. "Okay, first question... when did you realize you were attracted to feet?"

"Well, um, it was about six years ago. Tanya was sleeping over at my house, and we were, um, sitting on my bed. She had her legs stretched out and she was barefoot. I mean, I had seen her feet a whole bunch of times before and they never did anything for me. But that night..."

Her voice trailed off and there were several moments of silence, before I responded.

"So, Tanya's feet were the first ones that caught your attention."

She took several deep breaths. "Yeah, that night I just kept staring at her feet. It was like, wow, I never realized how, how beautiful they were."

"That's very interesting. And Tanya didn't know about it?"

"No, I mean, I don't think so. At least she never said anything to me."

"Hmm, okay... and she still doesn't know about your fetish?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure she doesn't. But, um, she might be suspicious since I sometimes look at her feet and, uh, offer to rub them."

I laughed, causing her to blush. "Yeah, I've noticed you glancing at her feet a few times in class."

Her face became beet red and she turned away from me. "Oh, I, um—"

"It's okay. She probably doesn't know. And I certainly won't mention anything to her."

She let out a sigh of relief and smiled at me. "Thanks. You're being really cool about this."

"Well..." I placed a hand on top of hers. "...I wasn't very cool when I lost my temper with you earlier." I swallowed hard as I squeezed her hand. "I acted like a total bitch, and it was wrong of me. It's just, I've got all these conflicting feelings."